What Is Not Mine to Carry

Sometimes the pain we feel
did not begin with us.

It arrived through someone else
a word, a moment, a wound
that found its way in and stayed.

This practice is a way to notice
what you are still holding
that may no longer belong to you.

How to begin

Step outside, or sit quietly.

Let your body settle first.
(Calm first always.)

Bring to mind the feeling not the story.

Where does it live in you?

Let the breath drop lower, into the belly.
Slow inhale.

Longer exhale.

Empty the tank gently, without force.
Until it feels like is nothing left to hold.

Returning to a normal breath, gently ask

🌿Is this mine to carry?

Do not rush the answer.

Just notice what shifts.

If it feels heavy, inherited, or lingering
without belonging

Imagine placing it down.

Not pushing it away.
Not denying it.

Just…
no longer holding it.

You might say (quietly):

This does not belong to me anymore.

Stay for a moment after.

Notice what remains
when you are not carrying it.